Learning to read Japanese involves memorizing the two syallbaries, Hiragana and Katakana, and then about 1000 to 2000 Kanji. In my early days of studying Japanese I  remember coming up with a way to make study more interesting. Basically, I saw each script as  members of a family.  I’d like to share this with you.

I saw Hiragana is the baby of the three. It is the first syllabary Japanese learn. It is primarily used to write out things for which there are no kanji, such as verb endings and grammatical elements such as prepositions. It is also used for writing out things for which there are kanji but which do not warrant kanji to be used, such as some simple words, or writing out names without kanji. For example, my wife’s name is normally written in Kanji, but her parents chose to have her name written in hiragana instead of Kanji. She was named after a famous Japanese ballerina. She always writes her name in Hiragana.

* My wife Kaoru with our son Luke

I saw Katakana like a teenager constantly changing with the modern culture. It has two purposes. The main role of katakana is for writing out foreign-derived words often referred to as loan words which have been integrated into the Japanese language. The number or loan words is growing rapidly. The second purpose of katakana is to put emphasis on words, similar to the western use of italics, underlines or asterisks. This is why you will find a lot of Japanese written in Katakana in manga. Katakana in manga is often used to express anger or surprise. My sons name is Luke so it is written in katakana.

* My son at his Japanese  kindergarten

Kanji, the old, traditional and meaningful script. The wise half Japanese, half Chinese Grand Daddy. Most students of Japanese know that the bulk of Japanese script is actually Chinese in origin. The problem with Kanji is in the “readings”. There are two readings for Japanese Kanji; one that comes from classical spoken Japanese called kunyomi and readings that come from classical Chinese are called onyomi.

What I found very difficult about learning kanji  was  the readings. The problem with readings is that it is not always clear when to use which reading. There are few rules that state that a kanji is read in a particular way when used on its own, or when part of a word. This would drive me crazy.

The only real way to make sure you are using the right reading for a kanji when encountered in a context that you had not seen it in before, is to look it up – while sometimes one can guess whether a kunyomi or onyomi is used, it is typically impossible to be certain. Only with reading experience would this

Now my wife and I teach Japanese online with a number of downloadable products. One of our most popular products is Read Japanese Fast – a program that teaches how to read Kanji in context with screen capture video tutorials. This is for students who have a little study experience under their belt. If you are a complete beginner then we have a course devoted to learning and reading Japanese Hiragana.

• Have a Hiragana Chart above your study desk
• Carry a set of flashcards
• Practice each character’s stroke order daily

When I first learned hiragana I had my Japanese flatmate write each Japanese hiragana character on a small pad for me. She drew one character per page, and was very kind to take the time to use black ink and a calligraphy brush. I remember thinking how beautiful they looked. So I had these 46 small pieces of paper each with a character on them.

What did I do with them?

I stuck all of them on the walls of my bedroom. Every time I entered my room I would try to recall the sound of several of them. When I was confident I had mastered the reading of one I would remove it. It took about two weeks before my walls were bare again.

I recommend that you have a hiragana chart above your study desk. You can download this hiragana chart and picture chart

I also worked very hard on learning and practicing correct stroke order.  This was years before the Internet so I used a book and got help from my Japanese friends.  Writing out the characters really helped in cementing their readings. I highly recommend you do this.

I also carried a set of flashcards around. Whenever  I took the train into college or work I would have them out recalling the readings and tracing the stroke order. This was a great way to pass the commute.  Here are a set of hiragana flashcards for you.

I later basically used the same methods to learn Katakana and several hundred kanji before moving to Japan. Then in Japan it was all focused on learning kanji and studying for the Japanese Lanaguge Proficiency Test.

If you are interested in learning  how to read and write Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji check out my product Read Japanese Fast. It teaches students how to read kanji in contect. If you are a beginner and are not ready for kanji then take a look at my Read Hiragana site.